Too Much, Never Enough
by porcupinology
Summary: Bella has reluctantly fallen for Edward, Edward is arrogant, taken and a tease. So why does he keep sneaking through Bella's window at night and kissing her? And what happens when Bella isn't willing to be the other girl? All human, OOC. M for lemons
1. Prologue

I had heard a lot about Edward Cullen.

I had heard about his charm, his disarmingly good looks and his sense of humour. I had also heard about his arrogance, his infuriating smugness, his penchant for casual sex with various girls at Forks High and about the messy trail of broken hearts he leaves behind him. From his sister Alice, my new next door neighbour since moving to Forks to live with Charlie, I had heard about his temper, his arrogance and his infuriating smugness.

Yeah, I'd heard a lot about Edward. But when I finally met the notorious womaniser, the temperamental, beautiful brother of my new friend, I was by no means prepared.

I'd moved to Forks in July to give my mother Renee and her new husband some space as newlyweds, and while I had braced myself for something hellish it wasn't too bad. Despite the rain- which having moved from Phoenix, felt incessant- it was the hottest time of the year and there were a few enjoyable days where I could sit in Charlie's leafy garden with a book, or lie on a rug with Alice and listen to her talk about boys.

I'd met Alice Cullen as I was moving in, and practically within five minutes she was in my room rifling through my newly filled closet and demanding that I surrender and let her cut my hair. Now it was August and she was a crucial part of my new life in Forks, and I felt a whole lot better about starting a new school if she was going to be there too.

And this night was my chance to meet new people. It was one of those warm, clear evenings and Alice was throwing a party- to celebrate the end of summer, and the return of her brother Edward from his extended summer road trip. And for me, it was an opportunity to meet the people my age in Forks- the people I'd been nervously avoiding , because, well, it's scary meeting new people in a town full of strangers.

Alice appeared in the doorway to my room as I was saying goodbye to Renee on our weekly phone call. "Bella. You can't wear that. I won't let you" Alice stated authoritatively, and I rolled my eyes and hung up the phone.

"I wasn't even going to. These are my pajamas, Alice. I might not be glamorous but I'm not going to wear sweats to your party."

"Good. But I wouldn't be surprised, I don't think I've seen you wear a dress, like, ever. And why haven't you dried your hair yet? Do you want me to curl it? Or are you having it straight tonight?" She descended on my hair and I batted her off, laughing, as she tugged and combed it with her fingers.

"Leave me alone you witch. The hair is mine tonight. You can style me if you must though, and you're right, I don't think I own a dress. I think I have a tunic somewhere if that counts."

"Tunics never count. Don't worry, I brought over something for you to wear that isn't too tragic. You get ready, I'll go call Edward again- he's still not back and if he misses my party there'll be blood. Blood!" She swept out of the room. For a tiny person she can do very dramatic exits.

The Cullen's house was right next door to Charlie's, and as I walked there I felt nervous. The night was warm- probably the warmest I'd experienced in Forks yet- but I felt a bit shaky, and was relieved when Alice answered the door with approving exclamations about my appearance and a glass of wine ready for me in her hand which I took gratefully.

I'd been worried that Alice's dress would be one of the ornamental showpieces she loved, but it was actually perfect, an understated, cream coloured, ruffled affair. I'd teamed it with some ballet pumps and messy curls and, despite my nerves, I felt like I was presentable for the debut of my new social life.

I was going to need a cigarette, that much was certain. I was happy but stressed and a little drunk, and after listening Alice's friend Jessica talk for half an hour about the pros and cons of Edward Cullen, followed by some drunk guy called Mike trying to launch himself at my lips, I sneaked out round the back and ran into my house to grab some tobacco from my hidden stash. I walked slowly back through my garden as I rolled a cigarette, carefully hitching myself over the fence in into the Cullens' garden. Calmness washed over me as I guiltily lit up. I'd been quitting on and off for a year, and hadn't smoked since I came to Forks, but always kept some supplies in case of stressful situations.

The Cullens' garden was big, and it was beautiful, especially now when the sun was just setting. Alice's mum, Esme, was a landscape designer and had created a work of art, full of trees, flowers, paths and various nooks and crannies. Settling on a bench under the shelter of a large apple tree, I smoked and pondered the evening as darkness slowly descended. Sure, it had been going well enough. Jessica seemed sweet and she didn't seem to think I was a total drag, and if Mike hadn't taken me by surprise with his advances he could be quite cute.

"You're an asshole, you know that?"

My thoughts were interrupted by a girl's voice, angry and high, coming from the other side of the apple tree. My inquisitive side kicked in as I automatically leaned forward to hear better.

"I waited for you for months and you come back and don't even call, and Jessica said that Emmett said that you slept with _loads_ of girls on your _trip_. And now you're clearly drunk and.."

"Oh come on, Lauren, cut me some slack, I just got back now, yeah? Didn't you miss me? Haven't you even got a kiss for me?"

The voice was low and smooth, but rasped a little.

"Edward you can't just _kiss_ me and think that everything will be _fine-_"

So this was Alice's brother, Edward, living up to his reputation presumably. I was about to sneak back to the house- it was a bit weird listening to my best friend's brother with some girl in his garden- but the voices got nearer, blocking off my path to the house.

"Jesus Lauren, let's just leave it, I'm barely unpacked. Besides, we're not alone anymore."

Yeah, I should definitely go back inside now.

"What do you mean..?" squeaked Lauren.

"That's smoke, right? There's a smoker out here. Probably eavesdropping."

And round the corner came Edward Cullen, staring at me accusatively.

My first impression was just of _angles_. His lean body, dishevelled hair, straight nose and the planes of his jaw and cheekbones resulted in a feeling of hardness, not to mention the cold look he was giving me. But he was absolutely stunning. I could see why the girls in Forks went crazy for him, and why I'd been hearing about him all summer. The darkness of his eyes, his long fingers, the glint of bronze in his hair; my stomach clenched. Images entered my brain before I could stop them- my hands in his hair, him on top of me, moaning my name...

"Who are _you_?" he said coldly.


	2. Prologue ctd

Hi guys. This is my first fanfic so thank you for reading! And please review if you like it or have any comments to add. Thanks xxx

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_And round the corner came Edward Cullen, staring at me accusatively._

_My first impression was just of angles. His lean body, dishevelled hair, straight nose and the planes of his jaw and cheekbones resulted in a feeling of hardness, not to mention the cold look he was giving me. But he was absolutely stunning. I could see why the girls in Forks went crazy for him, and why I'd been hearing about him all summer. The darkness of his eyes, his long fingers, the glint of bronze in his hair; my stomach clenched. Images entered my brain before I could stop them- my hands in his hair, him on top of me, moaning my name..._

"_Who are you?" he said coldly._

I replied brightly "Bella Swan. I live next door."

Lauren huffed impatiently. "This isn't over" she said over her shoulder to Edward as she turned to head back to the house.

Edward ignored this and, after looking me up and down, he flopped onto the bench next to me, seemingly unimpressed at the stranger in his garden.

"Actually, it is over" he remarked. I blinked, pretending I hadn't been staring at his lips, and pulled out my tobacco to roll another cigarette. _Breathe, Bella_. This was definitely, possibly, probably the best looking guy I'd ever met, and my fingers even shook a bit as I rolled.

Edward suddenly leaned forward. "Can I have one?"

"Sure". Good, Bella, normal voice.

"You're Charlie's daughter." He stated this, rather than asking.

"Yes."

"My sister told me about you. In her emails. You're kind of pretty, you know."

Yep, my hands were definitely shaking as I passed him a cigarette. He lit up, then reached into his jacket and a bottle of whiskey came out, from which he took a swig. How badass. I gave a tiny eyeroll which he spotted, and he laughed.

"You want some? You don't seem drunk and I am _wasted_."

I indicated to my glass of wine and he snorted.

"So, pretty friend-of-Alice's, what's your name again?"

"She's called Bella, asshole" Alice emerged from the trees, scowling at Edward. "And why didn't you find me as soon as you got in? I've _missed_ you!"

She pouted grumpily as Edward went to her, laughing, and gave her a hug, lifting her up.

I smiled at Alice, feeling a bit guilty for no particular reason and also feeling a bit sad that she'd interrupted mine and Edward's brief conversation. Had he been flirting with me? That was definitely flirting. Then again, I'd heard about Edward- he flirted with everything that moved.

"And yes, Bella is pretty. Too pretty for you. Aren't you still with Lauren?" Alice demanded.

"Nah. She dumped me" He said lazily, seeming unfazed.

"Pah! As if you ever get dumped. It was clearly you ending it" Alice decided.

Edward shrugged and gave me a heartstopping crooked grin. "I might date Bella now anyway. Right Bella?" he joked, and I had to work hard to keep breathing.

"Er, take it easy or I'll be behind that apple tree yelling at you for cheating on me before you know it" I managed to quip.

"I knew it!" Alice exclaimed. "Cheating again Ed? I guess it was only Lauren. But Jeez. Anyway, Bella, you need another drink. And what's this I hear about you and _Mike_? Seriously Bella?"

I cringed with embarrassment, and I could feel Edward's eyes on me.

"Mike _Newton_?" He questioned.

"Yeah, but nothing actually happened, he just lunged at me and I managed to duck. Um. I'm sure he's a nice guy anyway, I think he just had a bit too much wine?"

Alice giggled and Edward snorted. "Mike's an idiot" he announced. "I wouldn't go there if I were you, pretty girl.

"Oh whatever Edward" Alice snapped-"like you can talk- Jessica's been whining after you all evening so please come inside and put her out of her misery."

"Jessica who?" Edward frowned as we made our way towards the house.

"Stanley, you douche."

Did Edward really get that many girls that he didn't know their names? If he was so dismissive of beautiful girls like Lauren and Jessica then what hope in hell did I have?

Because I had to admit to myself- after barely having had a conversation with Edward, my heart was beating hard in my chest, and I could tell that he was being imprinted on my mind so hard that I would never forget his face, or his sultry voice and the way it wrapped around my name.

But I pushed that out of my mind, telling myself what I already knew- _Edward broke hearts_.

I kept repeating it in my head, but when I got home that night and was getting ready to sleep, all I could think about were his dark eyes, his lips, the way he held himself, the way he would hold me...

I'd never paid attention to the view I had of the Cullens' house.

But as I drew my curtains to sleep, I paused- because I was pretty sure I could make out the dim form of Edward in the window on the side of the house, level with mine.

He was taking a swig from a bottle, and then turned around, because a girl had come into view. She kissed him, and then she turned to the window to close the curtains, and I could see it was Jessica.

I closed my eyes, holding my breath and waiting for the pangs to subside in my chest. It was ridiculous, I was being ridiculous- almost in tears over a guy I didn't even know. A boy I'd met once.

But I think even at that point, I knew that I was falling in love with Edward Cullen. And I kept repeating to myself that Edward doesn't love- Edward breaks hearts- but there was already a little bit of me that belonged to him, I think.


	3. Biology

So this was it. My first day of school at Forks High.

The day wasn't off to a great start.

Firstly, my hair was_ not_ behaving. Having curled it, then straightened it, then washed it again, I'd resignedly put it up into a scruffy ponytail. I'd planned to wear a cute blue dress that was just casual enough for school, but realising that all my pairs of leggings were in the wash, I sighed and pulled on my skinny jeans (with holes in the knees from when I'd drunkenly tried to climb in through my own window in Pheonix), a ribbed white tank top and tied a grey oversized cardigan around my waist.

I assessed my reflection in the mirror. I wasn't glamorous, or sexy, but I might possibly pass for kind of cute with a bit of mascara.

I wasn't the kind of girl who usually cared that much about my appearance, which is why I was failing so epically at trying to put together a kicking ensemble. But today I did care- and I didn't want to admit it to myself, but there was one reason in particular for me wanting to look good.

A reason that had dark eyes, permanent sex hair and lips that I just wanted to bite.

A reason who was going to be at school today. And who, much as I wished it otherwise, had a girlfriend.

I hadn't seen Edward much since the party last week. I'd come across him when I was walking back from the store on a sunny day. I was wearing a tee with a big strawberry on it and some denim shorts. Edward was walking with a couple of guys- the blonde one I recognised as Jasper, who I'd met at Alice's party, and the other one, who was brawny and even taller than Edward, was unfamiliar.

The big dude had been throwing a baseball in the air and catching it, and then he threw it to Edward, who deftly caught it in one hand.

Then Edward spotted me- at the sight of him I'd only just managed to carry on walking without either falling over or running away.

"Hey, strawberry- catch!" and he launched the baseball at me.

For someone vaguely co-ordinated, it would be an easy catch. But being Bella Swan, I gasped, dropped my bag of groceries and let the ball bounce off me and into the curb.

The boys burst into laughter. I blushed, hard, and bent down to pick up my dropped bag. Emmett swooped down to pick up the ball, and Jasper bent down and helped me repack my groceries, then winked at me and walked on with the group.

As they left, I distinctly heard Edward's voice saying 'did you see her face? Red as a strawberry. Classic."

I blushed just remembering it. But no- new school, new start, etc. It was time to stop being clumsy Bella, who trips over her own feet and blushes whenever a boy looks at her. Time for Bella the supervixen, who traps gorgeous men in her web of awesomeness.

Yeah. Right.

As I fixed myself some cereal Charlie attempted some bonding.

"How you feeling Bells? First day of new school and everything. You nervous?"

"I'm fine, Ch...dad. Are you done with the milk?"

"Sure. You want a ride to school? Or is that not 'cool'?"

I made a face. Embarassing as my truck was, I'd choose that to arriving in a police wagon. With my _daddy._

"Thanks, I should probably head off now though." I chomped down the rest of my cereal, drained my coffee and swung my backpack over my shoulder as I headed out the door.

"You look nice today, by the way" Charlie called after me.

Big fat liar.

I was already feeling much more nervous as I pulled into the parking lot of Forks High. On the way I'd imagined about a hundred nightmare first-day-of-school scenarios. Nobody sitting with me in the cafeteria. Tripping and landing in my lunch tray. A gaggle of cool cheerleader-type girls sneering at me.

Then someone knocked on the window of my truck, reminding me that I don't live in a bad American-high-school movie.

"You coming out or what, babe?" Alice complained, and I slid unwillingly out of the truck to join her.

Double math first thing. Oh joy of joys. In my nightmare first day scenarios I'd forgotten just how boring and crappy school generally is, without even having to be humiliated or bullied.

There were a lot of eyes on me as I walked into my first class, and I scanned it for a face I knew.

"Bella. Bella! Come sit here." It was Jessica Stanford. Oh. Ok.

I tentatively sat down next to her, and she beamed and flicked her hair- which was super shiny. I wondered if Edward liked it, then wished I hadn't.

"This is Lauren" she said, indicating to her left. Lauren nodded once, staring at me suspiciously. I wondered if she remembered me from the party. I also wondered if she knew that Jessica and Edward were, like, a thing. Hmm, there was a minefield to avoid.

"Are you good at Math? Because I'm terrible, and Lauren's not much better. We don't understand, like, anything Mr C says."

Jessica was interrupted by Mr Carver starting the class, and I spent the next hour and ten listening to Jessica getting told off for trying to talk to me.

I felt pretty exhausted when I went to my locker in the break. If I hadn't quit (ha) I would be scouting out the nearest place for a smoke- as it was, I settled with swigging a Coke and trying to work out on my map where to go for Biology, my next class.

It took me a while to find the classroom, but I eventually stumbled in five minutes late.

"Isabella Swan, I presume? Very well, find a seat quickly"

I scanned the classroom for an empty seat. There was one. And ohdearlord it was next to none other than manofmydreams Edward Cullen. He was looking godly and eyeing me up and down in a way that made me feel nervous. I sat down awkwardly, letting my hair swing down and hide my blush. I thought maybe I should say something to him, but Mr Banner was already back in full swing with his lecture and I wasn't sure if I was able to form a coherent sentence around Edward yet. I settled for examining his hand out of the corner of my eye. It was nice. Big, with long fingers. He bit his nails.

Something nudged me in the ribs. It was Edward.

"Yeah?"

"Er, d'you wanna go first or shall I?"

Crap. Mr Banner had stopped talking and asked us to do something while I'd been daydreaming about the things that Edward's hands could do to me.

"Um" I said, articulately.

"Y'know what, it's fine, I'll do them all actually. I'm frickin' awesome at Bio. You're lucky to be my lab partner to be honest, you can just sit back" Edward proclaimed.

"I'll have you know I'm fab at Biology, Cullen." I said, annoyed by the (correct) implication that I was useless at Biology.

"Big words for a small girl" he said, grinning crookedly, and I melted a tiny bit.

"I'll just finish off this little experiment or whatever while you watch in awe. What are we doing again?"

Edward laughed, and I smiled too, elated that I'd actually managed to string together some sentences in front of dream-boy.

As it turned both of us were terrible biologists. We spent ten minutes arguing whether the first slide was anaphase or metaphase, only to be told by Mr Banner that it was actually prophase.

Considering the fact that I'd been anxiously imagining this first conversation with Edward for the last week, I thought it was actually going surprisingly well. Because I was sitting down the effects of my clumsiness were limited, and I hadn't stuttered or accidentally told him I wanted to lick his face. I was totally cool and casual.

The bell rung, and as we left he held the door open for me, winking. But before I could even melt into a pool of lust at his feet I bumped smack into Jessica.

"Shit, sorry Jess" I gasped, and I thought I could see a glint of suspicion in her eye when she looked from me to Edward.

"That's ok Bella. Edward, wanna walk me to lunch?" and she snaked her arm around his waist and whisked him away. I watched as he slung his arm around her shoulder, not looking back.

The wink burned in my mind, making me shiver.


	4. Intervention

**Hi guys! Sorry I haven't updated in so long, Christmas then exams, you know how it is. I've got most of the story written though so they'll be coming in fast now. Please review and let me know what you think- it's so nice to get reviews xx**

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"So where do you want to go tonight, Bells?"

Instead of listening to Alice I had been glancing anxiously at the doorway to the cafeteria, and her question caught me off guard.

"Huh?"

Alice sighed, taking another bite of pizza.

"It's the end of your first week at Forks High and tonight we're celebrating with some drinks. Question is whether we slum it in Forks or take a trip somewhere."

"So, like.. who's 'we'? Is Jasper coming? And... Jessica?"

Alice didn't even bother calling me on my lame attempt to subtly ask if Edward was going.

"Yeah, Edward's coming" she replied, as if that's the question I'd asked.

A blonde beauty came into the hall, flanked by the broad guy I had seen with Edward the previous week. This was Rosalie Hale and Emmett McCarty, who were, as I had learnt, an infamous couple at Forks High. On my first day they'd had a blazing public row in the cafeteria at lunch, promptly followed (I found out from Alice) by an inappropriate make-up session in the janitor's closet.

"Alice. Bella." Rosalie nodded as she sat down. Emmett reached for a slice of Alice's pizza and she batted his hand away.

"Hey, cool cats. Drinks tonight. Meeting at mine at seven." Alice stated.

"Kay. I'll take the SUV and we can all ride together. I'm not drinking cos I have a game next week" Emmett said through a mouthful of my fries.

Rosalie snorted. "Is that why you're trying to eat healthily then?"

"Enough of the lip, _you_" Emmett replied, flicking a fry at her.

But I was momentarily distracted by Edward coming through the cafeteria door. At last- I'd been staring at the door for the last fifteen minutes waiting for him.

A week of seeing him everyday and I still hadn't got over how unusually beautiful he was. As he spotted me and Alice and sauntered over towards us I watched how his charcoal coloured tee clung to his chest. He wasn't too broad or bulky but he was obviously strong, and I could see the definition in his arms as he casually tossed an apple from one hand to the other. His hair was everywhere, and his lips were very slightly pouty. I wanted to bite them.

"Sup sis. Rose, Emmett, Bella."

"Edward. You're coming out for drinks tonight, right?"

"Sure" he said, reaching across and stealing a fry from my plate.

"And Jessica? Is she still grounded?"

Emmett snorted and I allowed myself a little smile. Things had blown up on Tuesday when Lauren finally found out about Jessica and Edward, and a full on cat fight had ensued in the hallway in between class. As a result both girls were suspended from school, and Jessica had been grounded.

"Yeah, I guess she's grounded" Edward shrugged, taking another fry. I couldn't help noticing that he didn't really seem like he cared.

"Two chicks fighting over you. That shit is hot, bro" commented Emmett.

Rose snorted. "Not when they're both idiots. Seriously, I can't believe you managed to date two of the nastiest girls in school within days of each other, Edward. Don't you have standards?"

"They might be dumb but they put out" Emmett commented. Alice, Rosalie and me shot him dirty looks and he widened his eyes innocently- "what? I'm only being objective about why Edward's dating Jess."

"Guys, you've cleaned out Bella's fries" tutted Rosalie disapprovingly, as Edward took the last one.

"Sorry Bella" said Emmett, still donning his puppy dog eyes.

"Yeah, sorry Bells" Edward chimed in.

"Go get her some more. She's like a stick as it is, you want to deprive her of lunch?" Rosalie snapped. Edward got up, smirking, and stretched, his tee rising to reveal several inches of tone and light dusting of hair trailing down into his jeans. I bit my thumb, swallowing.

"Anyone want anything?" he asked.

"Yeah, an apple. Emmett, you go with Edward" Rose said, pushing a bemused Emmett out of his chair. The boys slouched off and suddenly Rose and Alice were leaning in conspiratorially.

"I wish I was a French fry" I blurted out, confusingly.

"Bella. This is an intervention" Alice announced.

"An intervention?"

"Yep. You have a problem. An Edward problem, to be precise" Rosalie stated, and Alice rolled her eyes.

"Whaa? Nuh uh. I don't even know what..." my eyes glazed over as I saw Edward across the cafeteria. Alice snorted disparagingly.

"You're, like, so into him Bella. You practically melt everytime you see him."

"Oh _shit_" I muttered. "Am I that obvious? Crap. Do you think he knows?"

"Don't worry babe. It's just cos we have super observation skills. He probably just thinks you're shy. Or a bit odd." Rose said, helpfully.

"Anyway" Alice interjected "we're here to help. Since it would be useless to tell you to get over him because he's a dick-

"a self obsessed, arrogant wanker.." Rosalie added

"a heartbreaking, smug player. But since it would be useless to tell you this, because you obviously are totally into him, we're going to help you make it happen. Plus, I'm really sick of Jessica." Alice wrinkled her nose.

"Make it happen? Er, come on, there's no way. I'm totally not his type. He barely knows I exist" I protested.

"He notices you more than you think. I heard him telling Emmett that you were funny. And, well, I think he meant funny-ha-ha..." Rosalie contemplated.

"All you need is to let me do my thing. Stop holding me back, Bella! I have so many dresses for you... and the things I could do to your hair..." Alice was already clawing at it, and I sank my head into my hands.

"Fine! Ok! I'm at your mercy. I take it you're going to want to start tonight" I said, resignedly, and Alice laughed gleefully.

"You got it. Both of you are coming back after school. Magic is gonna happen."

It was seven o'clock that evening and I was already exhausted. I had been prodded, plucked, trimmed, pulled and painted on to within an inch of my life, and Alice was still surprisingly chipper, replenishing our energy with glasses of wine and crackers.

"You can't be drinking on an empty stomach" she chided, doing something to my eyes with metallic powder. "Plus you need energy for dancing"

I laughed. "Good one. I don't dance. Anyway, I thought we were only going out to a bar for a couple of drinks?" I protested.

"Some drinks, a bit of a dance, a bit of clubbing, maybe go back to someone's house..." Rosalie commented from Alice's bed where she was curling her hair.

"Jeez, I thought Forks was supposed to be dead? Where is this underground party life?"

"It's the people who make the party, babe. Now, we need to find you something to wear." Alice was already rifling through her wardrobe, picking out dresses and tops and chucking them onto her bed. "Here, try this" she said, holding up a gruesome orange dress.

I hesitated.

"Don't be shy Bella, just try it on for goodness sakes" Rosalie chipped in, and I resignedly pulled off my tshirt and jeans. "I hate you both" I snapped, and grabbed the dress. "And orange really doesn't suit my skin tone."

At that moment I heard a door slamming down the hall, and a shout of "Alice, what the fuck have you done with the whisky?"

The door swung open and Edward appeared, frowning. My mouth was open and my eyes wide, as Edward spotted me frozen in my underwear.

"Oh. Shit. Hi Bella. Er.. hi Rosalie."

Rosalie was laughing quietly but almost hysterically, and Alice shoved a Jack Daniels bottle at Edward and pushed him out the door. Rosalie was still laughing as I buried my face in the orange fabric, mortified.

"Oh relax, Bella" Alice said, exasperated. "And you're right, orange really isn't for you."

After I had recovered from the shock of Edward seeing me in my underwear (at least I'd worn matching today) I was finally ready, dressed in a little black number that was laced up with ribbons at the back and hugged in all the right places. Alice had cajoled me into some crazy gold heeled pumps ("you can take some ballet pumps in your bag or something") and I was tentatively trying to walk in them when the door rang.

"That must be Jasper and Emmett. Come on guys!" Alice dashed out the room. I checked the mirror one last time. I had to admit that I actually looked quite pretty- Alice had done a good job. My hair was loosely tousled round my shoulders and my eyes were all smoky and dark.

"Come on, vain girl, it's time to go" Rosalie chided, and I grabbed my back and hurried out, nearly slamming into Edward in the hallway.

"Sorry!" I gasped, as he grabbed my arms to stop me from falling. A slow smile was forming on his face, and I realised our faces were only a few inches apart. I could see the flecks in his eyes, and feel his breath on my face.

"That's ok" he said in a low voice. "I guess you're pretty clumsy, huh?" I blushed, disentangled myself and slowly made my way downstairs, teetering on my heels, with Edward behind me.

Emmett was waiting at the door, and he wolf whistled when he saw me. "Damn, Bella, I think I just got a semi. Nice dress." Rosalie punched him good naturedly in the arm, and I heard Edward snicker. "What? Just being objective."

"Oh, I don't know" Edward said with a smirk. "I think I liked what you had on earlier better."


	5. Push

**Hi guys. Hope you like the chapter, they're going to get longer and longer as the story gets going. If you like it and want me to update then please review! xxxx**

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The bar was called _Push_, and it was already filling up when we got there. I scanned the room. A group of girly-girls wearing not much at all were already eyeing up the dance floor, some tanned, dark guys were at the bar with a couple of girls, and Rosalie and Emmett had already disappeared into a corner somewhere.

Edward was looking as hot as ever in jeans, a grey tee and a suit jacket. My leg brushed his as I sat down and I bit my lip. _Easy, Bella_. I was feeling wired from the alcohol and the car ride, where I'd been sitting next to Edward with our knees practically touching. It was awesome.

Yes, I heard that in my head, and I realise that getting excited about your knee almost touching the guy you like's knee is sad. But you haven't met Edward.

"Bella. Drinks?" Alice gestured to the bar. Squeezing into a space by the bar I tried to catch the eye of the barman- a pierced guy with a blonde ponytail. "No- not that barman Bella- go for the girl instead- dammit" Alice hissed in my ear as the blonde guy caught my eye and a slow smile spread across his face.

"Well hello there, tiny" he drawled at Alice. "Who's your friend?"

"Bella. New in town. Fresh meat. Two gin and tonics and two tequila shots."

"Bella. That's cute. Hi Bella, I'm James. Where have you moved from?"

"Oh leave her alone, perv-man." Rosalie appeared at my side. "And a glass of pinot noir, hurry the fuck up."

James winked at me and started getting our drinks.

"Don't mind him Bella. He's actually harmless, Alice just hates him cos he's so unfazed by her scary looks" Rosalie said quietly.

Alice glowered.

"Hi ladies" Emmett said, jostling through the crowd towards us. "We're going up to the roof terrace. Join us when you get your drinks".

The roof terrace was actually quite appealing. Various pot plants were scattered around as well as some garden furniture. A few groups of people were scattered around smoking, and we could still hear the thrum of music beneath us.

"Ok ladies and gents- it's truth or dare time" Jasper announced, eliciting a groan from most of the group. It seemed that truth or dare on the roof was a tradition, because everyone assembled into a circle and Jasper downed the remains of his beer and set the bottle on the ground, spinning it.

"Alice. Truth or dare?"

"Go on then, dare"

"Dare you to kiss a guy in this circle" Jasper said, smirking. Alice rolled her eyes.

"Well obviously Edward's out of the question, and I don't want death by Rosalie if I kiss Em. Coming at ya, Jasper." She leaned over and gave him a chaste kiss on the lips.

"Oh man, that barely counts as a kiss" Emmett complained, but Alice shot him down with a look and spun the bottle.

"Rosalie"

"Dare"

"Umm.. you have to do a handstand" Alice said with a gleam in her eye.

"What the fuck?" Rosalie demanded, and then resignedly got up and after swearing at us for laughing actually did a perfect handstand there on the terrace, displaying to everyone some pretty raunchy red lace underwear.

Credit to Rosalie that she didn't blush, and unfazedly spun the bottle. I was starting to feel nervous. Truth or dare was fun until it was your turn.

"Jasper. Truth or dare?" asked Rosalie

"Truth" Jasper said warily.

"How long have you been into Alice?"

Alice practically spat her drink out, spluttering in a very un-Alice-like way. Edward froze, staring from Jasper to Alice, and Emmett roared with laughter. Jasper looked dumbfounded.

"Since spring" Jasper finally admitted, glancing apologetically at Edward and avoiding Alice's eye.

Of course. I had been so wrapped up in being obsessed with Edward that I'd completely missed all the signs. Because from Alice's total lack of composure, it was obvious- she liked Jasper too. I was the crappiest friend ever.

Emmett slapped Jasper on the back and Jasper hurriedly spun the bottle, trying to draw attention away from himself.

"Rosalie. Revenge time" Jasper said, giving an evil laugh.

"Dammit Jazz. Truth, I guess."

"How many guys have you screwed?"

Rose smacked him over the head then admitted "ten".

"That's ok babe" Emmett said, giving her a sloppy kiss on the cheek. "They've made you the sex panther you are"

I glanced at the others, who were looking unfazed. I wondered if any of them were still virgins or if it was just me. I wondered how many girls Edward had slept with, and I blushed. I wasn't ashamed, exactly, of my virginal status- I had never felt in a rush to lose it, but I wasn't treasuring it like a precious flower or anything. It just had never really happened. But suddenly I felt like the greenest, most inexperienced girl in Forks. Which I supposed explained what I did next.

"Bella" Rosalie said wickedly. "Your turn"

The bottle was pointing at me. Great. Knowing that dares were out of the question- these guys were brutal- I reluctantly said "truth".

"Hmm. When was the last time you had sex?"

_Shit. _I could feel myself go red as the others cackled.

"Babe, you can't ask Bella that, she's too sweet" laughed Emmett.

"Rules of the game Bella, you have to answer" said Rose smugly, obviously still feeling sore from her last truth.

I glanced around, and caught Edward's eye, who was looking at me with what might be curiosity. And then I lied. Well, sort of.

"Urgh. Well, um, put it this way, I haven't been getting any in Forks."

It wasn't really a lie. I hadn't been getting any in Forks. Or, for like, the last seventeen years.

"So... three months. Jeez Bells, I would go crazy. Better find you a fella quick" Rosalie said, shaking her head, and I smiled, biting my lip, and spun the bottle.

"So you're a sexpert then Bells?" Alice said to me later that night, when we were in the girls room touching up our make-up. From the way she said it I knew she was gently letting me know that she saw right through me.

"Don't tell the others. Please?"

"Course not. And guess what? Me and Jasper soo have a date!" I grabbed her arm and we both shrieked in a very irritating way.

"That's amazing Alice! I can't believe you didn't tell me how into him you are. I can't believe I didn't figure it out myself to be honest."

She shrugged, smiling mischievously.

It was one in the morning when we finally clambered into Emmett's car, and I was feeling sleepy as hell. All the energy I'd spent being aware of Edward had drained me, and I drifted off in the car. As we stopped outside mine and the Cullens' houses I jolted awake, before realising that I'd dozed off on Edward's shoulder.

"Oh... sorry" I mumbled, pushing my hair out of my face, and Edward smiled a crooked smile.

"No worries. You totally snored though."

I looked at Alice, mortified, and she shook her head to let me know he was teasing me.

I let myself into my house, waving a goodnight to the others.

"And what time do you call this?"

Dammit. I'd told Charlie I'd be back by midnight and it was almost two. He was sitting in the living room trying to look stern. I was unconvinced.

"Oh.. hey. I guess things ran a little late. Sorry Charlie- Dad, I mean. I wish you hadn't waited up."

"I didn't. I just got up for a glass of water and noticed you weren't back."

"Yeah, I'm really sorry. I guess in Phoenix I got used to not having a curfew or anything."

Charlie sighed and got up, heading upstairs. "That's ok Bells. Just let me know where you are next time."

Wow. Got off pretty lightly there considering he was the chief of police- I guess I'd expected him to be a major disciplinarian or something. I had a feeling that he was reluctant to play the bad guy when I'd only just moved to Forks, especially considering how lax Renee was.

Entering my room, I pulled off my shoes, wincing as I realised how tender my feet were. Scraping my hair up into a messy bun, I hobbled to my bedside table which housed my secret emergency tobacco stash, grabbed a blanket and rolled a cigarette as I stealthily snuck downstairs and out onto the porch barefoot for a bedtime cigarette.

I'd already lit up, taken a much savoured drag and curled up on the porch steps with my blanket when Edward decided to alert me of his presence.

"So much for quitting, huh?"

I flinched, dropping my cigarette and burning a hole in my blanket. Edward was also sitting on his porch steps. Also smoking a cigarette. Weird.

"Jeez, Edward, that was creepy. Thanks. And, yknow, emergency stash."

"Ditto" he said, gesturing to his cigarette. He lazily got up, and sauntered over to sit next to me. "I've officially quit since February but sometimes Forks just gets the better of me. Especially trying to sleep"

Hmm. That was interesting. Two insights into Edward in one sentence- that Forks sometimes 'gets the better' of him, and that he has trouble sleeping.

_Pfft, Bella. Hardly a revelation._

"So how you finding Forks?" he asked after a minute.

"It's ok. I mean, it's kind of green, and wet, and it's weird living with Charlie again. But Alice is great, and Rose and Jasper and everyone. And there are perks to being far from the city too."

"Yeah? Like what?" Edward seemed sceptical.

"Just stupid stuff. Like the forest, and the sea. And how you can see the stars at night, and so many of them. It's crazy, I don't think I'd seen a proper night sky before I moved here." I took a drag of my cigarette and narrowed my eyes at the stars.

My gaze was tilted upwards at the sky, and I was frowning, trying to remember what the Plough looked like, which is why I didn't see that Edward had moved really close to me until he gently touched my chin, tilting it so I was face to face with him. My nose brushed his, and I gasped, my heart officially going on hiatus for a few seconds.

"I just want to try something" Edward murmured, and I could feel his breath on my lips. "Stay very still."

Easily done- I had frozen on the spot when Edward touched me.

He moved forward very slightly, touching his forehead to mine, and our noses brushed again.

"Breathe, Bella" he said softly, laughingly, and realising I'd been holding it, I let out a sigh of breath.

And Edward kissed me on the lips. Almost tentatively at first- although I would never usually think of Edward as the tentative type with girls- and then with more conviction, gently nudging my mouth open with his lips so he could deepen the kiss. And just as I began to respond, moving my lips in response to his, a light went on in the front window of my house, and just like that Edward was gone, moving swiftly across the grass and almost silently slipping in through his front door.

I sat on the step for another minute, dazed, until I realised the sky was lightening with streaks of pink and that my cigarette had gone out


End file.
